


The Spectral Bunky

by Nopholom



Category: The Magnificent Seven (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Comedy, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-07
Updated: 2017-08-23
Packaged: 2018-10-15 23:45:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10559730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nopholom/pseuds/Nopholom
Summary: Prompt Fill: ghost/living person au ReddyBear (Horne is the Ghost) (Title was also their choice and is hilarious sorry)Upon hearing some harsh, homophobic comments about the former owner, Teddy falls hard for a garish, Ski-Lodge aesthetic couch and insists he and Red buy it, but the couch isn't the only thing they bring home.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is either a 2 or a 3 parter, I do not have everything written for it I'm mostly just getting it out there to show I'm still alive >.>
> 
> Find me at Nopholom.tumblr.com if you want to request stuff
> 
> the prompt is for this fucken nerd http://pastelnuva.tumblr.com/

 

“Finally!” Teddy thrust his fists into the air before flopping down onto the couch, the last piece of furniture they’d moved into their new home, Red sagged down beside him, leaning on his shoulder and sighing heavily.

“Thank _God_ ,” Red huffed, though as he said it there was a creak of wood and a resounding _crack_ beneath them, and the two of them were suddenly sat a good couple of inches lower in the middle of the couch. “For _fuck’s_ sake,” Red groaned,

“It’s okay,” Teddy assured him, attempting to stand and falling back into the old couch they’d hauled all the way from Red’s basement room in his parent’s house, laughing as he tried once more and couldn’t get up, now laughing too hard. “Red h-h-help!” he snorted, Red just stared at him for a few seconds, expression impassive until Teddy looked at him, face red and tears in his eyes, then he cracked a grin and shoved himself out of the chair, laughing quietly.

“Come on then,” Red chuckled, pulling Teddy out of the hole and embracing him, trailing his hands down the pastel varsity jacket that he’d bought his boyfriend to celebrate them placing the deposit on their new home. Teddy cuddled him, laughing into his shoulder and rubbing his face into Red’s neck, kissing the corner of his jaw before moving up to kiss him on the mouth, a short sweet gesture that was interrupted by his seemingly endless laughing at falling through the couch.

“Guess we need a new couch…” Teddy finally stopped laughing, easing out of Red’s arms and looking at the old couch,

“Yeah…” and with that they proceeded to heft the battered leather couch back out of their apartment, thankful they only had to carry it down one flight of stairs.

“Moving out already boys?” their neighbour joked, an older guy who lived next door with his partner, though he helped them get downstairs and dump their broken couch on the sidewalk, “There’s a store a few blocks down where you can probably get a new one,” he explained, “usually pretty cheap, proceeds go to charity,” he added,

“Thanks Mr Robicheaux!” Teddy beamed, grabbing Red’s hand and dragging him off in that direction. “I’m gonna miss that old couch,” Teddy noted,

“Really? I thought you hated it…” Red frowned, Teddy always complained that it wasn’t exactly comfortable, as it had been in Red’s household for longer than Red had actually been alive, but it was a decent bit of leather and had been through a lot before today.

“I lost my virginity on that couch,” Teddy mused and Red laughed,

“Me too,” he nudged Teddy then, pulling his hand and making him stop, easing him against the nearest wall and kissing him, “to this adorable little dork who thought he was punk, at least until I got to his _panties_ ,” he purred low and Teddy blushed furiously,

“ _Red_ ,” he laughed nervously,

“They were pink actually, frilly too,”

“Shut _up_ ,” his laugh was louder this time, embarrassing and uneasy, but good still, “We need a couch before the store shuts,” he complained, “And we need to see if they’ll bring it to us,” he added as they got further away from their apartment building.

 

They got strange looks when they walked into the store, the customers and staff all seemed to be old women, a stark contrast to both Teddy’s pastel pink jacket and washed out blue hair tips, and Red’s penchant for black clothes and solid piercings. They ignored it though, easing through the racks of clothes towards where they could see furniture at the back of the large store, Red slipped his hand from Teddy’s when Teddy began to race ahead, happy to saunter after and stare silently at anyone who was staring at _him_.

There was a nice selection of furniture, leather couches, recliners, all a little worn but not anywhere near as old or used as the one they’d dumped on the street, Red gravitated towards a black leather one, of course it was more _grey_ in places where people had sat, and there were claw marks on the one side from a cat or something. Teddy was milling around looking at different ones when he overheard two of the women talking,

“Didn’t Jack Horne make that?” one of them asked, gesturing to rustic looking log furniture,

“He did, his wife has donated a lot of his things to us,” her voice was hushed, but Teddy could hear regardless,

“Oh dear, what happened?” the other woman gasped,

“He killed himself, selfish thing to do if you ask me,” she huffed, Teddy’s heart ached for the man,

“That’s awful! Unexpected too, he was such a nice man,” the other said softly,

“Well, his wife left him, took the children,” she said, voice clipped, and the other woman let out a soft ‘poor thing’ before she continued, “I hear she found out he was a _homosexual_ ,” she hissed the word and Teddy bristled, glancing over at Red, wondering if there was a way he could offend the old bats, as the other one seemed less keen on Mr Horne now she’d heard this rumour.

“What a horrible thing to put those children through,” the less aggressive one sighed,

“Yes, and we’ve had to make the furniture cheaper in case anyone knows it’s _his_ , heaven knows what he’s _done_ on that thing,” Teddy glanced at the old rustic looking furniture set. Teddy’s face lit up when he saw the large couch, it was pretty long and well looked after, the cushions were all a garish pattern with little bear silhouettes walking along them, and Teddy was kind of in love.

“Red, I want this one!” he called out as he rushed over and plonked his white denim-clad ass down on the garish cushion,

“What?” Red looked over at him, seeing what he was sat on and groaning, “are you serious? That is the ugliest thing I’ve _ever_ seen,” he cringed but Teddy was going to be stubborn about this one, for Mr Horne’s sake.

“It’s not! It’s unique!” Teddy protested,

“It looks like it belongs in a ski lodge…” Teddy gestured for him to sit down, patting the cushion right beside him, and Red rolled his eyes before sitting down beside his boyfriend, it _was_ comfortable, but there was still the issue of it being revolting to Red.

“It does, but that just makes it better, how many people are gonna have _black leather couches_? Too many, wouldn’t you rather have this? It’s handmade, really sturdy,” he wiggled his eyebrows then and Red grinned at him, curling a hand behind his neck and drawing him in for a small, sweet kiss. Teddy heard an indignant gasp from one of the old women and smiled against Red’s lips before leaning away, and settling back into the couch, “What do you think?”

“I think it’s disgusting looking, but it’s in better shape than the others…” he murmured, Teddy glanced across at the other couches, now that he knew a slip of history for this couch he was in love with it, and he wanted _Red_ to be in love with it too.

“It’s a good couch, and I think it’s cheap too,” he added, reaching over to the label stuck to it and turning it over, “Jesus Christ…” he gasped, “Red it’s $30, we need it,” he grabbed Red’s hands and stared at him, imploring him to buy this couch.

“Ugh… _fine_ …” Red grimaced, “Since you love it so much,” Teddy watched him stand and head for the cashier, eventually returning with an older gentleman too, “This is Jonah he’s gonna drive the couch home with us,” he explained and Teddy hopped up and between the three of them they carried the couch out to a truck with the thrift store’s peeling logo painted on the side, sliding it into the back.

“It’s pretty heavy…” Teddy conceded as they dropped into their seats in the front of the truck, Red giving Jonah their address,

“And we have a flight of stairs to carry it up too,” Red noted, Teddy gave him an apologetic look,

“I can’t help y’all with that but I’ll get it off the truck,” Jonah piped up as they drove, falling silent after that and ignoring the two boys, a clear discomfort in the air.

 

Their old couch was gone when they arrived, presumably someone had called to have it removed, and between the two of them it didn’t take _too_ long to get it up the stairs and into their apartment, when they finally shoved it into place opposite the TV they were both exhausted and a little sweaty. Red shrugged off his hoody and peeled off his black vest, dumping them both on the floor before flopping back on the couch, Teddy had already sat down and was watching him strip, chewing his lip at the sheen of sweat on Red’s body.

“You’re so hot…” Teddy sighed, earning a smirk,

“Sweating to death actually,” Red countered and Teddy laughed, he couldn’t help but lean over to Red, pressing his hands to Red’s damp, muscular chest and letting the heels of his palms brush over pierced nipples as they met in a kiss. Red shuddered suddenly and drew back, Teddy looked confused, watching as Red’s skin prickled up in gooseflesh, a chill brushed over _him_ then and he pulled his jacket tighter around himself, “Don’t tell me we’ve got a fucking _draft_ ,” Red cussed, standing and hunting around the room for the source of the draft. Teddy just sat there, shivering a little but it soon eased off and the warmth crept back into his bones, though an odd sadness settled within his chest and he couldn’t place it. Red returned and grouchily sat on the couch beside him,

“Did you find it?” he asked, scooting along to cuddle up under Red’s arm,

“Nope, weird,” Red squeezed him affectionately and kissed the top of his head, he was hot to the touch and Teddy loved it, easing his fingers up from his hip to his navel, tracing over the piercing through the top of it before going higher. He felt a slight chill near his back but it wasn’t as bad as before, like he was out of the line of the draft, so he ignored it and let his thumb brush over Red’s nipple, tugging the spiked stud gently and earning a hiss of pleasure as the nub it was through grew hard. “You’ve got two hands,” Red pointed out as he tucked a hand behind his head, pushing his chest out into Teddy’s hand, Teddy smirked then, he _did_ have two hands, but he had something else a _lot_ closer to Red’s neglected nipple. He glanced up, Red’s eyes were closed, perfect, so he leant in and slid his tongue between the two points of the piercing, against the slightly swollen nipple, Red moaned and Teddy squeezed the other nipple, easing his teeth behind the spikes and biting ever so lightly, drawing more noise from his boyfriend. “You act all… _ah_ … innocent, but you’re filth,” Red laughed, the arm he had around Teddy moved to cradle the back of Teddy’s head, Teddy took the encouragement and licked at Red’s nipple, tugging his piercing gently whilst he rubbed and tormented the other with his thumb.

Teddy eased back soon after, looking up at Red and smiling as he licked his lips, leaning up to kiss him, he loved Red’s piercings, the feel of metal rings against his mouth as they kissed, the way a gentle tug of them would make Red sigh or moan. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Red asked against his mouth, Teddy shrugged and kissed him lightly, “Why don’t we Christen the new couch?” he purred and Teddy felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment, he wasn’t sure _why_ he was embarrassed, but he definitely felt it.

“Not yet,” he said quietly, Red gave him a quizzical look and Teddy shrugged awkwardly, it just felt _weird_ , in fact it felt kind of weird just _kissing_ , but he supposed he was just tired or something, “I’m gonna fix dinner…” he gave Red one last kiss before standing and fleeing to their freshly furnished kitchenette.

Teddy watched Red from the kitchenette as he worked on turning a couple of short baguettes into pizzas, it was easy work so his attention was mostly on his boyfriend as he picked up his clothes and left the room. Red returned in a band tee and proceeded to invade the kitchenette, wrapping his arms around Teddy’s waist and resting his chin on his shoulder, swaying their bodies gently,

“You’re such a dork,” Teddy laughed, dragging Red around as he put the French bread pizzas on a tray and moved them to their oven.

“Says the man who brought _these_ with him,” Red used one arm to gesture at the pastel pink toaster and kettle that Emma had bought him as a housewarming gift,

“They’re awesome!” he defended, he loved those,

“I know,” Red hummed, cuddling him a little tighter, “When’s dinner gonna be done?” he asked,

“When it’s _done_ ,” he laughed, turning in Red’s arms and cuddling him, “I can’t believe we’ve finally done it,” he whispered,

“Me either, our own _place_ ,” Red uttered, the two kissing lightly once more, thrilled to finally be free to do this whenever they wanted, without feeling awkward around their respective families.

 

Emma had warned him that the first night in a new home would be strange, but Teddy had figured he’d be fine since he had Red to snuggle up against; there were no unusual bumps or groans in the night, no doors creaking on their own, but he _did_ wake up in the middle of the night with a mouth dryer than a desert.

He disentangled himself from Red’s strong arms and shifted out of bed, padding from their bedroom and into the main room, shivering at the bitter chill that had wept into the room; he tried to rush his task, filling a glass with water and downing half of it, placing the glass on the counter. He rubbed at his bare arms before something caught his eye, slowly looking up at their lounge, specifically at the log couch they’d brought home the day before; sitting in the middle of it with his head buried in his hands was a large man, his shoulders shaking violently, the sound of muffled sobs filtering through the room. Teddy was in shock, who the _hell_ was this man? How had he gotten into their apartment?

“Uhm…” he let out, he didn’t know if he should shout for Red or talk to the guy on his own, he was a _big_ guy though, if there was a fight Teddy wouldn’t win it, “Who are you?” he asked, voice cracking embarrassingly. The man’s shoulders stopped shaking and he turned his head, looking first at Teddy, then around the room, as if he was talking to someone else, “Hey,” he tried again, “How did you get in here?” he asked nervously and the man looked at him again,

“You… you see me?” he asked, his voice was pitched and unusual, and if Teddy hadn’t been outright _terrified_ of this bear of a man in his home, he would have _laughed_. He squinted in confusion, of course he could see the guy, what the hell kind of question was that? He was about to speak but the man stood and Teddy balked, staggering back nervously and grabbing a knife from the block to potentially defend himself, cringing when he held a short, curved peeling knife out at the man. “Now son there’s no need for that,” he held his hands up in surrender, “I… I won’t hurt you…” he assured,

“How did you get _in_?” he demanded behind his short knife, his voice was quiet and he didn’t know _why_ , he should be shouting for Red, at least Red could help him take down this hulking _bear_ of a man.

“I… I don’t know…” the man admitted, he looked just as scared as Teddy felt, “I was… in a store… and now I’m here…” he looked confused and Teddy found himself lowering the knife,

“A store?” Teddy asked softly, staring blankly for a moment,

“A store… one I’ve been to a hundred times, nothin’ but nice to them, but the things they _said_ ,” he sagged back onto the couch, it barely dipped despite his size and he began to sob again, “About me, bout what I did to my _family_ , I didn’t do _anything_ ,” he wept and Teddy broke, placing the knife on the counter and rushing over, pausing when he flinched,

“Mr Horne?” he asked nervously, watching as those sad, teary eyes flicked up at him, “You’re Mr Horne right? I heard what they said about you,” he scowled as he said it, moving to sit down beside Horne, shivering when he felt the chill of the man’s presence. “It…” he trailed off as it dawned on him, his cheeks suddenly starting to burn hot as he realised he and Red had _made out_ in front of this man… this _ghost_.

“ _Teddy_?” came a tired call from the other room,

“In here!” he responded, regretting it for a moment, his hand reaching for Mr Horne, feeling his icy shoulder much to his surprise, he looked up to see Red walk in, regarding them both with tired confusion before levelling Mr Horne with a confused look.

“Who… do I even want to know?” he asked,

“He’s dead,” Teddy blurted, giving Horne an apologetic look,

“I can see that…” Red stated, hands on his hips, completely unashamed of his nudity even in the cold,

“You… can?” Teddy frowned, earning a blank look from Red,

“I mean I can _tell_ he’s a spirit,” he said,

“Oh… is… that a Comanche thing?” he asked, Red didn’t look amused at all,

“ _No_ ,” he laughed, “It’s an _edgy teen who loved the occult_ thing,” Teddy snickered at that and Red gave a ‘what of it?’ shrug,

“Sorry…”

“At least it wasn’t a _weeb_ phase…” he side-eyed and Teddy cringed, “so how did he get here?” Red asked,

“The couch…” Teddy admitted, head hanging,

“Oh great, you forced me to buy a _haunted couch_ ,” Red drawled, sighing and leaning in the doorway,

“What do we do now?” Teddy asked, looking over to Red, then glancing at , “We can’t just… I don’t know… _make him go_ …” he felt bad for talking as if Horne wasn’t sat right there, but he didn’t know how else to go about this.

“Well I’m going back to bed…” Red dismissed, turning his back on them both and leaving the room, Teddy looked to Horne then, squeezing his chilly shoulder and giving him a concerned look,

“Will you be okay here? You… can stay as long as you need to,” he said, “Red won’t mind,” he assured after, watching as Horne nodded before leaving him alone in the lounge.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, life has been pretty hectic, sorry about that, I'm hoping to have this finished and posted by the end of the weekend!

It took them almost two months to get used to Jack’s presence, they enjoyed his company and he wasn’t a hindrance, though as they finally grew more comfortable with him around, they started to slip into their old habits.

Teddy was lying back when it happened, biting his lip and melting into the pillows as Red, obscured by the covers, pleasured him, the only reason he’d known something had happened was because of Jack’s sudden outburst of apologies.

“Lord above! I’m sorry I didn’t… I didn’t think!” but by the time his eyes had opened and Red had lazily emerged from beneath the covers, they were alone in the room, the lingering chill of Jack’s spectral aura the only thing confirming that had really happened.

“Did he…” Red asked slowly,

“I think so…” Teddy’s cheeks were burning as it dawned on him what had just happened, he quickly buried his face in his hands and Red pried them away,

“Want me to finish?” he asked but Teddy shook his head, he was _definitely_ not in the mood now, he felt embarrassed and he wanted to apologise, because they too should have been a little more considerate. “Hm… alright, I’m gonna hit the shower,” Red shrugged, giving Teddy a slightly salty kiss before easing out of the bed and sauntering into the bathroom to clean up and more than likely ‘finish up’ on his own.

Teddy didn’t move for a while, eventually getting up and pulling as many layers of clothes on as he could muster, including the Slightly Too Large leather jacket that Red had inherited from his grandpa, burying himself in the worn leather and lingering scent that Red said always reminded him of home, and always reminded Teddy of _Red_.

“Jack?” he called out as he entered the lounge, cringing when Jack turned sheepishly to look at him,

“I’m sorry I didn’t realise you two were… I…” he trailed off, “the time,” he added, gesturing to the clock, it _was_ almost midday, so he supposed it made sense that Jack didn’t think Red would be waking Teddy up with _oral_.

“I mean… I should apologise really, me and Red… we uh… it’s been a while since we’ve…” he mumbled uncomfortably, stiffly turning the kettle on to brew a cheap, instant coffee for himself,

“Oh…” Jack let out quietly, “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to intrude,” he said and Teddy felt even guiltier,

“It’s not your fault…” he lied, he and Red had stopped sleeping with one another since they’d moved in, returning to their older rule of not having sex when someone else was home, which Jack was _all the time_.

“No, it is, you two… you’re a young couple, you deserve to have your privacy, I shouldn’t intrude, maybe I should leave,” Jack suggested, Teddy sighed, pouring his coffee before moving to sit next to Jack,

“You don’t have to go, you know that,” Teddy assured him, “I like having you here and Red does too,” he insisted, Red _did_ seem to like him as well,

“I think I do… but I don’t know _how_ to leave,” Jack admitted and Teddy supposed he really _did_ want to go then,

“Well… I’m not going to force you to stay, I’ll talk to Red, we’ll try find a way to help you find peace,” Teddy promised, touching Jack’s chilly arm and smiling at him. It was a little upsetting that Jack didn’t want to stay with them, that he wasn’t happy here, but what did he really expect? Jack had _died_ , he was tied to their home against his will and his death definitely hadn’t been a pleasant one, being pushed to suicide by his own family, by something he couldn’t change about himself.

“Will you be okay on your own for a while?” he asked, he needed to grab Red and get out of the house, he didn’t feel comfortable discussing how they would get rid of Jack with him stood _right there_.

“I think so…” Jack nodded, “I am usually,” he said after, offering a slightly more convincing smile that had Teddy’s chest fluttering warmly,

“Good… I uh… well if you need anything, I don’t know how you can get in touch with us,” he laughed, scratching the back of his head, “I’m gonna get Red,” he added awkwardly, standing and leaving the room.

 

He managed to drag Red out of the apartment, stopping first at a coffee shop before taking their drinks and heading to the library,

“If anywhere is gonna have information, it’s the library,” Red pointed out, “plus the Wi-Fi is better here than in the café,” he added, holding the door open for Teddy and leering at his ass as he walked past, “Fuck you by the way,” he said, “Wearing those goddamn tight jeans, showing off your lace,” he grumbled and Teddy flushed, pulling his t-shirt down to cover his pants, “spoil sport,”

“Shouldn’t have said anything then,” Teddy shot back, sticking his tongue out as he looked over his shoulder, Red huffed but followed him anyway, the two of them finding a secluded corner to sit down with their drinks. Teddy browsed the library’s online catalogue whilst Red did research on his phone, after about ten minutes he had a decent list and was venturing around the library fetching heavy books, some of them actually looked serious, but most of them seemed to be fiction for the goth kids, and Red had probably read some of those ones at least.

He sat down on a beanbag chair beside Red, laughing when the weight of his flop forced Red to sit up higher, though a hiss travelled down the aisle and he flushed pink in embarrassment, giving Red an ‘oops’ shrug. They talked quietly as they looked through their research,

“He’s Christian, right?” Red asked,

“Yeah, I think so,” Teddy nodded, placing another book in the ‘no’ pile,

“I figure we should look at more Christian-catholic type rituals, exorcisms are pretty standard but that requires a priest…” he explained, handing Teddy a book and tapping a paragraph, “He’s pretty big though so stronger magic might be required, I can call my uncle and ask him,” he droned, opening another book, “or… we could try this…” he said, “Do we have a bell?”

“No, we also don’t have candles,” he pointed at the page, “but it looks promising,” he added, the two poring over the words, heads touching as they read about emotionally requesting a spirit go to the light,

“It also looks a bit _feely_ ,” Red noted, sticking his tongue out in obvious distaste,

“I can do it,” Teddy said quietly, he wasn’t above telling Jack he loved him, he told his friends that all the time, he could do it to help him pass on.

“Gay,” Red teased,

“hur dur, you’re the one who sucked my dick this morning,” he countered, turning and pressing a quick kiss to Red’s pierced lips, Red chuckled softly and eased a hand behind Teddy’s head, kissing him a little harder, tracing his tongue across Teddy’s bottom lip, inviting him into deepening it. Teddy hummed and opened his mouth a fraction, curling his fingers into the front of Red’s vest as their mouths slotted together easily and they started to make out. Teddy lost himself easily, moaning softly and easing himself into Red’s lap, trapping the book between them and teasing his hands through the short, soft stripe of hair atop Red’s head. Red’s hands eased down the back of his jeans, tugging at his lace panties so they eased into the crease of his ass and pulled taught over his crotch.

“You’re so fucking hot,” Red growled, grabbing handfuls of Teddy’s ass and squeezing now, making him giggle,

“I know,” Teddy beamed into his mouth, biting at the bottom of his lip and tugging, a piercing tapping at the back of his teeth. They continued to kiss, groping one another in the quiet privacy of the library corner, getting carried away as they ground against one another, Teddy’s soft moans getting a little louder than they ought to be.

“Ahem…” they broke apart like a shot and looked sheepishly at the librarian, an elderly woman with a face that would have been quite kindly if she wasn’t scowling at them like a dog had just taken a dump in her library.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry,” Teddy hurried, “We uh… I’m sorry,” he stammered, struggling to wrangle his way out of Red’s lap,

“Problem?” Red asked, helping Teddy sit beside him, staring hard at the librarian,

“This is a _library_ , not a den of iniquity,” she snapped, Teddy flinched but Red didn’t, scowling now,

“You’re kidding, right? I saw couples making out in here already,” he stated, highlighting to Teddy why exactly _their_ kissing had been singled out,

“You need to stop, or I will have to ask you to leave,” she warned,

“We’re leaving anyway,” Red huffed, standing and offering Teddy a hand, “I need you to check this out for me as fast as you can so I can go home and fuck my boyfriend,” he handed her the book with their chosen ritual, she looked down at it with disgust but haughtily turned on her heel and headed for the main desk, Red sauntering after, leaving Teddy to pick up the remaining books and place them on a returns trolley before he jogged after them both. “We got it,” Red said, holding the book up specifically so he could subtly flip the bird at the librarian, “How is this town so homophobic? Half our apartment block is gay,”

“Maybe it’s an LGBTQIA friendly apartment block?” Teddy laughed, taking Red’s free hand in his, their fingers lacing together as they left the library, intending to go get the things they’d need to help Jack find peace.

 

“Should we do it tonight?” Teddy asked, fidgeting as they sought out candles and the right kind of bell for the job,

“I mean the sooner the better, right?” Red answered, dumping a few boxes of candles in their cart, “We might need them for other stuff,” he explained, “power cuts, that kind of thing,”

“So not romantic baths then?” Teddy chuckled, loving how Red smiled at his dumb joke,

“Unless you’re making the romantic bath for _me_ , no,” Red countered, “Do you not want him gone?”

“It seems a little rude…” Teddy mumbled, “We said he could stay and now we’re just… throwing him out,”

“He wants to go Teddy, it’s not fair keeping him bound to our _couch_ ,” he explained, glancing around when he realised how what he had said could sound, he made eye contact with a guy their age who worked here, earning a look that said ‘not my business’ even though the other guy clearly wanted to laugh. After a mildly awkward moment he looked back to Teddy and lowered his voice, “he wants to go, we should help him,” he insisted and Teddy gave a sad little sigh, making Red laugh, “you have a crush on him, don’t you?” Red asked, Teddy’s face burned hot and he began to flounder, shoving at Red’s shoulder,

“Shut _up_ I do not!” he said indignantly, “you’re my boyfriend, why would you say that?” he whined, he didn’t _think_ he had a crush on Jack, but even if he did there was no reason his _boyfriend_ should be teasing him about it.

“Cause it’s cute,” Red shrugged, “besides I don’t exactly feel threatened by a dead guy,” he added, crowding Teddy against one of the shelves, kissing him, “I’m not about to grow a beard to keep you,” he murmured and Teddy continued to blush, scrunching his nose up in disdain and shoving lightly at Red’s chest,

“Don’t grow a beard,” Teddy grumbled, he liked his own facial hair well enough but he didn’t think it’d suit Red with his piercings, especially not a full beard. “I don’t have a crush on Jack…” he bit out, slipping under Red’s arm and returning to their cart, leading it down the next aisle, intending to find a hand bell to aid in this ritual.

“Me think he doth protest too much,” Red hummed against his ear, startling him and earning a quick jab in the stomach, “oof,” he let out, trailing after him now, “You’re too easy to tease,” Red pointed out, “This way,” he added, overtaking Teddy and grabbing the end of the cart, leading it to the left and towards another aisle.

They found the bell, or Teddy did, Red vanished into an aisle full of candy and had taken the cart with him, presumably spending their rent, though they met up at the cashiers, where the guy from earlier was sat looking bored out of his mind as an old man slowly packed his bag.

“There’s a lot of old people in this town,” Red pointed out,

“Try not to say it too loud…” Teddy chastised, they didn’t need another old angry person telling them off today,

“Whatever,” Red dismissed with a wave, the two waiting patiently for the man to finish his packing and leave, stepping forward to run their bell, candles, and candy pile across the conveyor belt, the guy was trying not to smirk at them as he scanned everything, handing it over to Red who hastily shoved things into bags, they paid quickly and left, relieved to be heading home.

Jack was flitting nervously around their kitchenette when they got there, pausing and looking at them with wide, concerned eyes,

“Did you find anything?” he asked, voice pitchy and clearly anxious,

“We did,” Teddy smiled, though Jack’s expression wasn’t one of joy, he looked sad, tired, but his expression changed and he smiled back,

“That’s great,” he answered, walking around the counter but clipping it with his hip, the way he passed through it made Teddy glance away, embarrassed somehow. “When can you do it?” Jack questioned,

“An—” Red began to say ‘any time’,

“At night,” Teddy interrupted, he wanted some time to at least say goodbye to Jack, to let him know that he was more than welcome to stay if he changed his mind about this before they did it, but Jack simply nodded and faded away, leaving the boys alone in their apartment for the afternoon.

“Sorry Teddy,” Red offered, easing into Teddy’s space and resting his hands on Teddy’s shoulders, “You okay?” he asked softly, Teddy shrugged at him and began to put things away, leaving a single candle, Red’s lighter, and the bell on their coffee table and tucking himself up on the couch to watch TV.

 

As night finally fell there was no sign of Jack, “Maybe he changed his mind,”

“We should just set up, he’ll probably be here,” Red shrugged, “besides we’re supposed to _call_ him remember?” he tapped the book as an explanation and Teddy huffed miserably, giving the text one more read through before he sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the candle and bell, Red slouching on the couch behind him, watching silently. Teddy lit the candle and closed his eyes, trying to picture a door, opening it with his mind,

“Please gift us with the Protection of the White Light,” Teddy said aloud, though the book hadn’t made it clear if he was just supposed to _think_ that or say it, “protect us and our home with white light, give us guidance in sending over this lost soul in our home,” he heard Red snicker but tried to ignore it, “and uh… if any pure spirits could help us guide him home that’d be cool,” he added but Red didn’t make a peep, showing his support with stoic silence. This was supposed to make him psychically aware, he didn’t know what that _meant_ , but he figured it wouldn’t hurt, so he opened his eyes and reached for the bell with a nervous hand, “Spirit come to the light,” he beckoned, ringing it, the flame on the candle flickered and Jack materialised stood before him, a confused look on his face, as if he hadn’t _meant_ to return yet, which was a good sign. “Jack,” he said softly, looking up at Jack with as warm a smile he could manage, admiration welling up in his chest, Jack regarded him quietly, taking in the dark lounge and the flickering candle, “Jack you need to go to the light,” he uttered, voice wobbling with emotion, he didn’t know how he felt about this, but Jack was smiling now, “your loved ones are waiting for you, you need to join them,” he explained, hoping it didn’t sound as stupid as he felt, “You can’t be on this plane anymore, you need to be free, and we lo… we love you, respect you _so much_ , too much to keep you earth-bound,” Jack didn’t say a word, just smiled at him, warm and watery eyed and Teddy heard himself sniff noisily, “Whatever you fear, whatever you think is going to happen, it’s not true,” he assured, “you’ll be safe, you’ll be with people who care about you, you’ll be with God, you’ll be _home_ ,” he sniffled, rubbing his eyes and feeling tears, he felt so stupid getting upset about this, it was what Jack _wanted_ , he had to support that, he barely even _knew_ him. “It’s your time to go Jack, go to the light now, be _free_ ,” he urged and Jack let out a soft sigh,

“Thank you…” he uttered, voice so soft and full of emotion as he stepped towards the candle, the flame flickering, going completely crazy as he dipped down toward the flame, Teddy felt sick, hot and cold all at once, trying not to sob as the light of the flame exploded outward in a flash and Jack was gone, the candle was smoking. He looked over his shoulder at Red, who looked genuinely shocked and sad all at once, beckoning Teddy up onto the couch and into his arms, holding him and comforting him through his tears in their darkened apartment.


End file.
